Ballot and comments from AP Pro 32 panel voter Rich Gannon of CBS Sports/SiriusXM NFL Radio:
Week 5
RICH GANNON (CBS Sports/SiriusXM NFL Radio)
- Houston Texans - On a roll right now, solid on offense and scoring on defense ... lethal combination!
- Atlanta Falcons - Something special happening with the Falcons and the players believe it as well.
- Baltimore Ravens - Survived a stretch of four games in 18 days and now after a few extra days off before heading to KC to dismantle the Chiefs.
- San Francisco 49ers - Beat down of the Jets reaffirms that this team is legit and can dominate on the road.
- Green Bay Packers - Survived the officiating to win at home. Still not perfect but they are figuring things out.
- Arizona Cardinals - Nobody better in overtime right now than this crew. Strong finish last year carrying over to this season as they now have won 11 of last 13 games.
- New England Patriots - Second half surge against Buffalo was huge. Still giving up too many big plays on defense.
- Philadelphia Eagles - Most impressive to me wasn't the play of Vick against the Giants but rather the running of LeSean McCoy ... Special!
- Cincinnati Bengals - If Dalton to Green doesn't get your attention then maybe a defense that leads the league in sacks will.
- New York Giants - Had plenty of chances in Philly but couldn't finish. When they have all their horses, they are tough to beat.
- Denver Broncos - I know it was the Raiders, but not a single punt and over 500 yards of offense.
- Pittsburgh Steelers - Getting Polamalu and Harrison back will be huge for this team.
- San Diego Chargers - Six takeaways against the Chiefs and solid play from Rivers is a formula for success.
- Minnesota Vikings - Nobody saw this coming as the Vikes are on top in the NFC North. Only starting QB without and interception is the league's most improved player, Christian Ponder.
- Chicago Bears - Beat down of the Cowboys on Monday night was impressive although I could do without Cutler disrespecting O.C. Mike Tice on the sidelines.
- Detroit Lions - All kind of issues, including horrendous special teams play.
- Buffalo Bills - As soon as Fitzpatrick figures out how to take better care of the ball is when the Bills will start to win consistently.
- New York Jets - Seems high doesn't it? But at this point there are plenty of mediocre teams with issues and the Jets are one of them.
- Dallas Cowboys - Haven't completely given up on Romo and the Cowboys ... at least not yet.
- Washington Redskins - Who would have thought Billy Cundiff would have made that last kick after missing his first three? Not me!
- Carolina Panthers - Painful loss at Atlanta, but they are getting better.
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers - Have to figure a way to finish in the fourth quarter as every game they play is going to come down to the wire.
- St. Louis Rams - Much more competitive despite a lack of talent at some key positions.
- Seattle Seahawks - Time for a QB change?
- Miami Dolphins - Trending up with the play of their defense and young QB Ryan Tannehill.
- Kansas City Chiefs - Never a good thing when the HC is discussing the QB situation at his post game press conference.
- New Orleans Saints - Nice effort in GB but where is the defense... Just awful!
- Tennessee Titans - Starting to have my concerns about whether or not Locker can stay healthy.
- Indianapolis Colts - Things only get more difficult without HC Chuck Pagano, who is battling leukemia. Hurry back coach!
- Oakland Raiders - No team struggles to win two in a row more than the Raiders.
- Jacksonville Jaguars - If they can't run the ball with MJD, they can't win with that QB.
- Cleveland Browns - New ownership will continue to evaluate everyone in that building.
Online:
http://pro32.ap.org/poll and http://twitter.com/AP-NFL
